The law firm of Littler Mendelson has added four attorneys to its Seattle office; joining as shareholders are Tahl Tyson and Pam Salgado, and as associates, Deidra Nguyen and Breanne Sheetz.

James G. Zissler, office managing shareholder of the firm’s Seattle office was quoted as saying in a press release at the firm’s website: “Tahl and Pam are well-regarded in the business and legal communities, and will be instrumental as we continue to strengthen our presence not only in the Pacific Northwest, but globally. In addition to Tahl and Pam, we are excited about the addition of our two new associates.  The collective knowledge and experience that this group of four brings will serve our clients well as we continue to reinforce our reputation for providing top quality labor and employment representation.”

Tahl Tyson has two decades of experience, with a seasoned background in handling domestic and international employment law matters, at top law firms and corporations. Before joining Littler, Tyson served as the Global Director of Employee Relations for Expedia. In this role, Tyson provided practical, strategic and tactical advice to global HR and cross-functional teams on a variety of issues, including performance management, conflict resolution, employment contract negotiations, mergers and acquisitions and executive mobility. She practiced as a partner at a national business and litigation law firm in Seattle, where she focused on defending employers in sex, age, race and disability discrimination, wrongful discharge and wage and hour litigation in state and federal courts, among other areas.

Pam Salgado also possesses over twenty years of experience. Her areas of expertise include counseling employers and high-level executives on all areas of employment law, as well as defending employers regularly in employment-related litigation and governmental proceedings, including claims for discrimination, failure to accommodate, and wage and hour violations.  She also has significant experience defending and prosecuting trade secret and unfair competition claims. Salgado is frequent speaker on HR and employment issues.

Deidra Nguyen counsels and trains employers on a broad variety of employment law issues, including non-competition and non-solicitation agreements, wage and hour, and workers’ compensation. Her experience extends to her representation of clients in matters being investigated by the United States Department of Labor, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Washington State Human Rights Commission, the Washington Department of Labor and Industries, as well as other state and federal employment agencies.

Breanne Sheetz advises and represents employers in a wide range of employment law matters dealing with federal and state law, including wage and hour class and collective actions, discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, among others. She co-authored a book on the Fair Labor Standards Act, as well as a book chapter on Washington wage and hour laws.

Littler Mendelson is the largest U.S.-based law firm that is solely devoted to representing management in employment and labor law matters. Established in 1942, the firm has over 825 attorneys and fifty plus offices. The firm is the only U.S. member of the Ius Laboris global alliance, giving it significant resources with which to address the needs of multi-national clients.

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Little Mendelson is based in San Francisco and is the nation’s largest labor and employment law firm with more than 750 attorneys. The firm, which saw its revenue increase 5 percent to $371.7 million in 2009, has been on the forefront of expansion among labor firms because of the recession, notes a report in the San Francisco Chronicle.

“With unemployment soaring to levels not seen since the 1980s, companies have been calling on labor and employment attorneys for a range of issues, including how to avoid violating laws during layoffs, what issues a company must consider when bringing on freelance workers and age discrimination suits,” the report states.

Sears, who has more than 15 years professional experience, represents employers in employment litigation in both state and federal courts. She also counsels employers on a range of issues including hiring, discipline, discharge, medical leave, wage & hour, disability accommodations, and workplace harassment.

“We are very fortunate to have Susan join the Firm,” said Marko Mrkonich, president and managing director of the Firm. “She is not only highly regarded in the Kentucky area, but she brings to Littler a strong record of successfully representing and defending organizations in employment-related matters on a regional and nationwide basis.

“The addition of Susan and the opening of our Lexington office underscores the firm’s commitment to delivering exceptional client service throughout Kentucky and the Mid-South,” Mrkonich added.

Littler Mendelson was founded in 1942.

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The addition of Johnson is part of an ongoing expansion at Arent Fox’s L.A. office, which opened in 2007. Last week, Arent Fox added six partners from Venable to its automotive practice. There are now more than 40 attorneys in the L.A. office.

In his new role Johnson is slated to counsel clients on issues posed by California and federal labor and employment law.

Arent Fox has more than 350 attorneys with offices in Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and New York City.

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With the addition, Jackson Lewis will now have 10 attorneys based at its Phoenix office. Jackson Lewis was founded in 1958 and has more than 600 attorneys practicing in 45 cities nationwide.

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Blank Rome

Dennis Codon is joining the firm as Partner in the Public Companies and Capital Formation group. Codon is moving to Blank Rom from the firm of Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi. Prior to that, Codon spent almost 30 years with Unocal, eventually becoming Chief Legal Officer.

Howard Knee is bringing a team of attorneys from Knee, Ross & Silverman, where he was a named partner. Knee joins as partner in the Employment, Benefits and Labor group.

Moving to Blank Rome with Howard Knee and also joining the Employment, Benefits and Labor group are Michael Ludwig, Colleen Carolan, Jim Newman and Mary Pierce.

Blank Rome LLP is the 84th largest law firm in the US according to the AmLaw 100. It employs about 500 at its eight offices in the US and Hong Kong.

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McDonald Hopkins is a business advisory and advocacy law firm with more than 130 attorneys. The firm has offices in Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, and West Palm Beach.

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With more than 750 attorneys and 48 offices, Littler Mendelson is the largest US law firm exclusively devoted to representing management in employment and labor law matters. Established in 1942, the firm has litigated, mediated and negotiated some of the most influential employment law cases and labor contracts on record.

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The firm hopes to avoid redundancies by reducing hours. The scheme has been approved by 19 of the firm’s 21 international offices.

Norton Rose is still working to make the plan comply with the law in France and Germany.

London lawyers and staff were informed this week they will be the first affected.

The plan, under which Norton Rose employees, including partners, would choose between a four-day week, a paid sabbatical of four to 12 weeks, or both, is entirely voluntary.

The Norton Rose Group is a leading international law firm. It offers business law services from 21 offices across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. With around 1000 lawyers, its practice specializes in five key areas: corporate finance, financial institutions, energy and infrastructure, transport and technology.

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The attorneys previously worked at the Williams Lindberg Law Firm, a boutique in Newport Beach, California.

Williams handles complex business litigation with an emphasis on environmental, intellectual property, real estate, technology law and labor matters.

McFaul focuses on real estate, admiralty, complex business litigation, and environmental matters.

Sedgwick, Detert, Moran & Arnold LLP is an international litigation and business law firm that provides counseling, risk management, litigation management, trial, appellate and transactional legal services to sophisticated corporate clients. Founded in 1933 as a three-person firm in San Francisco, Sedgwick now has more than 400 attorneys in offices around the world.

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The firm, which has nine of its 26 offices in Illinois, made the reductions across all offices and the dismissals weren’t concentrated in any particular practice areas, said managing partner Bill Roberts.

The employee cuts amount to nearly 3% of the former 1,002-worker headcount. The firm has 490 attorneys.

The firm counts business litigation and transactional work as its core strengths, although it has niches in labor and employment as well as school law.

The firm has offices in 12 states, including Florida, California, New York and Wisconsin.

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The firm this month cut ‘fewer than 10 attorneys’ across various practice groups, according to Jerry Biederman, the firm’s managing partner. He should hire a second grader who can actually count to ten, so we can know how many people got axed.

Biederman left open the possibility that the firm may have to make additional cost reductions if the economy continues to sour and negatively impacts law firm work. But the new Obama Administration’s proposed stimulus could accelerate companies’ disposal of real estate and other assets, and thereby boost transactional work.

The Obama Administration and its legislative priorities may also spur more work for law firms in practice areas related to healthcare law and labor unions and organizing, Biederman said.

Wildman, Harrold, Allen & Dixon, another Chicago firm with about 200 attorneys, said last week that it was cutting 10 attorneys, including five income partners and five associates.

Via Law.com.

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Looking for a recession-proof area of practice? … The business of porn grinds on even in lean times, and its purveyors need lawyers just as do any businesses. Adult-entertainment law is not just about obscenity and free speech, but also about zoning, labor law, record-keeping and who knows what else.

Thus, it should come as no surprise that the four-day Adult Entertainment Expo that wrapped up yesterday in Las Vegas included a program on adult-entertainment law. The Friday legal program was billed as featuring the “Young Guns” of adult-entertainment law, “the next generation of legal superstars in the adult industry.” The three porn-law sharpshooters featured on the panel were Jennifer Kinsley, a member of Sirkin, Pinales & Schwartz in Cincinnati, Ohio; Marc John Randazza, a partner with Weston, Garrou, Walters & Mooney in Altamonte Springs, Fla. (and author of the blawg The Legal Satyricon); and Cary S. Wiggins, a partner with Cook, Youngelson & Wiggins in Atlanta.

…

Lawyers, it appears, can make a decent living from indecency, even in a recession. So if these young guns inspire you to pursue a career in adult-entertainment law, you may wish to start out by going for a bachelor’s degree at the University of Florida. As it turns all, all three of these young guns graduated from there.

Via Legal Blog Watch and AVN.

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